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Dear San Marco Church Family: As I write this, I am thinking about the season of Lent as a critical part of our growth as followers of Jesus. As I stated in last Sunday’s message, I know that I need to spend more time cultivating my relationship with Christ in order to offer a positive witness of my faith to everyone I meet. If I allow the legitimate fears that arise from the chaos of this broken world to control me, I will not be an effective bearer of the gospel message. Friends, the goal of Lenten practices is NOT self-denial or self-punishment. The goal is a closer, more mature relationship with Jesus. The practices of giving something up or taking something on are for the purpose of removing the obstacles to that goal. Many of us, including me, sometimes keep busy in order to avoid really listening to what the Holy Spirit is saying to us. As I have quoted from the Old Testament story of Samuel in 1 Samuel 3:10, while Samuel said to God, “Speak, your servant is listening”, often we instead say, “Listen, your servant is speaking.” We need to practice more listening and less speaking. Lenten practices are not like New Year’s resolutions, in which we miss one of our goals and just decide that we have failed and give up. If we fail to keep a Lenten practice, we can just start again the next day, fresh and free from guilt. After all, a primary theme of our journey is, as Jesus said in John 15:5, without Him we can do nothing. When we fail, we are reminded more and more that we need a savior. God’s response to our failures and faults is NOT abandonment and scorn, but mercy and an invitation to return to His grace. In our United Methodist communion liturgy, after we acknowledge our shortcomings, we thank God for offering us “freedom for joyful obedience.” Have you ever thought of obedience as joyful? The practices of Lent are the means to the goal of freeing us for joyful obedience. We let go of all the “baggage” that weighs us down so that we can enter the joy of God’s kingdom. This is a kingdom in which joy is possible regardless of all the pain and suffering in this world. It is the joy the Apostle Paul experienced singing hymns while in a Roman prison. Difficult circumstances pale in comparison to deep trust in Christ. My prayer for you is that you experience God’s presence in your life at deeper and deeper levels this Lenten season. Let me know how I can help. I look forward to seeing you in worship Sunday. In Christ’s love, Steve Hart
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